Hindu Manners, Customs and Ceremonies - DUBOIS, Abbé Hindu Manners, Customs and Ceremonies, Dubois | Page 645

A PERFECT PANDEMONIUM
605
shouts and cries and whistlings
who
are present in great
is kept up.
The courtesans,
numbers on these solemn occasions,
while, as long as the procession
perform obscene dances
continues, the drums, trumpets, and all sorts of musical
instruments give forth their discordant sounds. On one
side sham combatants armed with naked sabres are to be
seen fencing with one another
on another side, one sees
men dancing in groups and beating time with small sticks
and somewhere else people are seen wrestling. Finally,
a great number of devotees crawl slowly before the car on
hands and knees. Those who have nothing else to do shriek
and shout so that even the thunder of the great India
striking the giants would not be heard by them.
But in
order to form a proper idea of the terrible uproar and con-
fusion that reigns among this crowd of demoniacs one must
witness such a scene. As for myself, I never see a Hindu
procession without being reminded of a picture of hell.
;
;
;
The above is only a slight sketch of the religious cere-
monies of the Hindus. Such is the spirit of piety which
animates them
Whatever may ha